Levo SL Gen 1 Levo SL 2023 Megathread

Dave_c said:
I'll have a look at the mech again later and compare to my XT mech with clutch on and off. If the resistance is no more than XT with clutch off then that would suggest a mech issue.

I am quite sensitive to noise, maybe obsessive (I've ended rides early when my bike has been noisy on climbs as it irritates me 🤣), but the noise is definitely intrusive. I'll have a look at it tomorrow and see if I can trace where the noise is coming from and feed back here.

Thanks for all of the inputs so far.
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So, have had a look, re-set the mech and checked all bolt torques etc, all good.

Went for a ride Saturday morning and still clattering like hell over the rough stuff. Removed the chain just to check and the noise was still there (it actually got worse but I did had the motor off, whether that matters or not I don't know).

Going to look at cable management - can anyone advise if the frame has internal guide tubes for the dropper and rear brake? If so then I guess no need to look at those and hence no need to drop the motor and battery but that only leaves the cabling under the TCU as a potential culprit I less anyone else has any ideas?
 
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Don't think cables would be as loud as you are explaining. Have you checked the headset? I don't know your bike but according to my search it has adjustable headset angle and the SWAT CC tool arrangement.
I recently bought a levo comp with that SWAT tool headset arrangement and found it noisy.
What I discovered is that both bearings sit in separate (black) outer races which in turn sit against the bearing seats in the headtube. I had changed the bars with the bike in a stand .....I have not messed with the headset angle. What I found was the only reliable way to ensure the bearings sit properly...is to assemble the headset with the bike on the ground. That ensures the separate outer bearing races sit correctly in accordance with the natural head angle. The stem can be part tightened to hold the steerer, then with the bike up on a stand the correct bearing pre load can be made. The headset /SWAT bolt in the fork crown needs considerably more torque to get it right than is required on a normal standard top cap headset arrangement. The stem can then be tightened to specified torque.
 
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Mikerb said:
Don't think cables would be as loud as you are explaining. Have you checked the headset? I don't know your bike but according to my search it has adjustable headset angle and the SWAT CC tool arrangement.
I recently bought a levo comp with that SWAT tool headset arrangement and found it noisy.
What I discovered is that both bearings sit in separate (black) outer races which in turn sit against the bearing seats in the headtube. I had changed the bars with the bike in a stand .....I have not messed with the headset angle. What I found was the only reliable way to ensure the bearings sit properly...is to assemble the headset with the bike on the ground. That ensures the separate outer bearing races sit correctly in accordance with the natural head angle. The stem can be part tightened to hold the steerer, then with the bike up on a stand the correct bearing pre load can be made. The headset /SWAT bolt in the fork crown needs considerably more torque to get it right than is required on a normal standard top cap headset arrangement. The stem can then be tightened to specified torque.
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Ps I had previously done the usual method of checking for headset play......seemed OK so dismissed it as a source of the noise. It was not until I removed the fork, stripped the headset and rebuilt it as above that I got rid of the noise.......I also applied blue loctite to the SWAT bolt
 
Mikerb said:
Don't think cables would be as loud as you are explaining. Have you checked the headset? I don't know your bike but according to my search it has adjustable headset angle and the SWAT CC tool arrangement.
I recently bought a levo comp with that SWAT tool headset arrangement and found it noisy.
What I discovered is that both bearings sit in separate (black) outer races which in turn sit against the bearing seats in the headtube. I had changed the bars with the bike in a stand .....I have not messed with the headset angle. What I found was the only reliable way to ensure the bearings sit properly...is to assemble the headset with the bike on the ground. That ensures the separate outer bearing races sit correctly in accordance with the natural head angle. The stem can be part tightened to hold the steerer, then with the bike up on a stand the correct bearing pre load can be made. The headset /SWAT bolt in the fork crown needs considerably more torque to get it right than is required on a normal standard top cap headset arrangement. The stem can then be tightened to specified torque.
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It does indeed, I did swap the headset cup to the slack position and did all of it on a stand so I'll have a look given what you have said above. Hard to say how loud it is but coming from an absolutely silent bike it seems quite loud to me so I guess it could be cables. Will have a look at the cables anyway.
 
Dave_c said:
It does indeed, I did swap the headset cup to the slack position and did all of it on a stand so I'll have a look given what you have said above. Hard to say how loud it is but coming from an absolutely silent bike it seems quite loud to me so I guess it could be cables. Will have a look at the cables anyway.
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I think what happens is that those outer bearing races do not settle properly against the fixed bearing seats in the headset without the weight of the bike forcing them into the correct orientation. It is also impossible to get preload right until that has been achieved. Any slack allows the butterfly washer that the SWAT bolt fixes up in the fork crown to rattle
 
Mikerb said:
I think what happens is that those outer bearing races do not settle properly against the fixed bearing seats in the headset without the weight of the bike forcing them into the correct orientation. It is also impossible to get preload right until that has been achieved. Any slack allows the butterfly washer that the SWAT bolt fixes up in the fork crown to rattle
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I did take a lot of care to ensure it was all seated correctly and there is no play in the headset but I'm pulling the fork anyway to have a look into the top tube and downtube to see what's what with cables so I'll do it on the floor this time as per your recommendation. I've also read the quick links can rattle, so I'll remove those.
 
Dave_c said:
I did take a lot of care to ensure it was all seated correctly and there is no play in the headset but I'm pulling the fork anyway to have a look into the top tube and downtube to see what's what with cables so I'll do it on the floor this time as per your recommendation. I've also read the quick links can rattle, so I'll remove those.
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Yep....did that
 
Just re joined to emtb riding after 2 years of non assisted mtb riding. Black friday sale Levo SL 2 Öhlins + range extender under 5000€. Couldn't pass this up since I was searching for a new sl emtb during this fall. This will join my 2024 s-works stumpy. Will post pics after I receive the bike and made necessary changes to the build:

- GX trans -> mech XT. All my bikes use shimano 12s system and I find it good and reliable, even in ff emtb use on my previous emtb.
- 29" wheelset (black friday sale newmen phase vonoa trail wheelset)
- Maybe shimano brakes, will have to test those trp dh-r evo's if I like then or not. I'm pretty lighweight rider @75kg so I don't need absolute power but the familiar lever feel.
 
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One question to levo sl owners: Is the rear shift cable housing routing tube-in-tube or do I need to drop the motor/battery when routing the shift housing?
 
eMullet said:
Just re joined to emtb riding after 2 years of non assisted mtb riding. Black friday sale Levo SL 2 Öhlins + range extender under 5000€. Couldn't pass this up since I was searching for a new sl emtb during this fall. This will join my 2024 s-works stumpy. Will post pics after I receive the bike and made necessary changes to the build:

- GX trans -> mech XT. All my bikes use shimano 12s system and I find it good and reliable, even in ff emtb use on my previous emtb.
- 29" wheelset (black friday sale newmen phase vonoa trail wheelset)
- Maybe shimano brakes, will have to test those trp dh-r evo's if I like then or not. I'm pretty lighweight rider @75kg so I don't need absolute power but the familiar lever feel.
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Well, here it is. Replaced parts, took a while since the rear shift housing rounting was a bitch. Had to drop the motor and fiddle with the top tube cable ports. Wasn't that hard but took time.

Happy with the result, weight came in at 18,8kg with pedals (cb mallet e). Not bad considering the burly suspension setup. Just need to reconfigure the wheel diameter at my LBS.

New parts:
Newmen Advanced Carbon bar
Newmen Evolution SL.4 stem
Newmen Phase Vonoa Trail Carbon 29" wheelset
Schwalbe Albert Trail 29x2,5" Ultasoft+Soft
Galfer 203mm Brake discs + pads
XT M8100 drivetrain
Mudhugger Evo Bolt on fender

IMG_20251222_230326356_HDR.jpg
 
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After first ride, it's pretty dialed. Absolute ground hugging feel with the coil (my first experience on coil shock). Really happy with the build. The winter has become here so the trails are pretty slippy without spikes tyres. Still, it's was nice.

IMG_20251224_112419249.jpg
 
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Evening all.

After resolving the rattling noise on my Levo SL2 I've now ran into another issue - the bike wouldn't fire up this morning 🙄.

I got the bike in September and due to various commitments it's only been on three rides. Went to get it this morning and it's dead. Have done the following:

1. Removed mastermind TCU and plugged it in for about 2 hours. The screen never made a blinker at any point and on plugging it in to the bike, nothing working.
2. Plugged the bike in to charger - red led came on the charging brick indicating charging, but TCU display stayed off
3. Plugged in range extender in case it was a main battery issue
4. Charged TCU whilst connected to the bike

None of the above have resolved the issue and the bike is dead.

Last ride was about 3 weeks ago, it was a very sloppy Dimmingsdale in the UK (if you've ridden there recently you'll know what I mean). Cleaned the bike when I got home (no power washing etc, being careful around motor and TCU). Dried the bike off, charged it up and locked it in the garage and all was well. Bricked this morning. One thing worth mentioning is that when I tried to switch it on initially and it didn't power up, before trying thr steps above I plugged it in and the screen momentarily lit up then turned off.

Any ideas where to go next? Drop the motor and disconnect it all/reconnect and then off to the nearest retailer if that fails? Anyone else has this issue and if so, how was it resolved?

Thanks
Dave
 
did you try bringing the bike indoors to warm up......maybe it was too cold?
 
Mikerb said:
did you try bringing the bike indoors to warm up......maybe it was too cold?
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Just done that acrually, it's been in the garage and it's getting down to about -3 or so the past few days. We'll see if it wakes up in the morning.
 
Dave_c said:
Just done that acrually, it's been in the garage and it's getting down to about -3 or so the past few days. We'll see if it wakes up in the morning.
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Good luck. Might be worth considering some old blankets or something to insulate the bike in the garage?
 
Loamranger said:
Good luck. Might be worth considering some old blankets or something to insulate the bike in the garage?
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Has been inside all night, still nothing. I think the TCU is bricked. Am I right in saying if it is disconnected from the bike and plugged in to charge that the screen should at least come on? I'm getting absolutely nothing from it, connected to the bike or not. Can't be bothered dropping motor if it's the TCU that's gave up.
 
Kept bike inside for a couple of days, removed TCU and put it near radiator/in bag of rice incase there was any moisture in there. Dropped the motor as well, all connectors look good with no signs of moisture ingress or corrosion. Bike still dead, in with Spesh now, should find out tomorrow what's up with it.
 
Dave_c said:
Kept bike inside for a couple of days, removed TCU and put it near radiator/in bag of rice incase there was any moisture in there. Dropped the motor as well, all connectors look good with no signs of moisture ingress or corrosion. Bike still dead, in with Spesh now, should find out tomorrow what's up with it.
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Does sound like a TCU failure, seems to be pretty common, don’t think they’re the most robust part to be honest.

My SL1.1 TCU lasted about 3.5 years, then one day decided it was no longer if this world. The LBS threw a new one in, which fixed it. Free of charge as well, which was surprising given the warranty was up.
 
Bike is fixed, needed a new TCU. They have no explanation as to why it failed so must have been defective in some way. Let's hope this one doesn't do the same.
 
The manual says the bike can be stored down to -20C and doesn't say anything about removing batteries. If it is the cold then the new one will die as well as it's pretty chilly at the moment.
 
The TCU has a replaceable cell battery. The Mastermind has a rechargeable lithium battery and that is only charged (by the bikes main battery) when the bike is switched on. Unlike the replaceable coin cell battery in the TCU it is not just a single lithium cell because it also needs circuitry to regulate the charge it receives. That is usually achieved with a thermistor. I would bet the thermistor failed.......they can be pretty erratic!!
I know your bike is a Specialized so may use different electronics but on Bosch Smart System equipped bikes, for example, that battery+ thermistor is 75mAh 3.7v 0.278Wh and is readily available for about £7.......and used in lots of devices (made in China of course!). It is a bit more fiddly to change than a cell battery but the 3 wire connector is just a slide on fit so not sure why they could not make it user replaceable. ( it's called Battery Cell BRC3600 by Bosch if you are curious to look up and see a picture)
 
Mikerb said:
The TCU has a replaceable cell battery. The Mastermind has a rechargeable lithium battery and that is only charged (by the bikes main battery) when the bike is switched on. Unlike the replaceable coin cell battery in the TCU it is not just a single lithium cell because it also needs circuitry to regulate the charge it receives. That is usually achieved with a thermistor. I would bet the thermistor failed.......they can be pretty erratic!!
I know your bike is a Specialized so may use different electronics but on Bosch Smart System equipped bikes, for example, that battery+ thermistor is 75mAh 3.7v 0.278Wh and is readily available for about £7.......and used in lots of devices (made in China of course!). It is a bit more fiddly to change than a cell battery but the 3 wire connector is just a slide on fit so not sure why they could not make it user replaceable. ( it's called Battery Cell BRC3600 by Bosch if you are curious to look up and see a picture)
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Thanks for the info - that would be a no brainer to just replace that. Problem is, the TCU has a 'warranty void if broken' seal around it, otherwise I would have pulled it apart to see what's what inside. I bet it uses the same battery+thermistor as you have mentioned above, but it'll have a specialized part number on it rather than Bosch.
 
Yes I un
Dave_c said:
Thanks for the info - that would be a no brainer to just replace that. Problem is, the TCU has a 'warranty void if broken' seal around it, otherwise I would have pulled it apart to see what's what inside. I bet it uses the same battery+thermistor as you have mentioned above, but it'll have a specialized part number on it rather than Bosch.
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Yes I understand. The same applies to the LED Remote on a Smart System bike.....but it was easy enough.
 
Hi There,
I'm in the market for a 25 levo sl sworks. I'm going to buy the frameset and build it myself. I currently have a 21 sworks levo with levociraptor tuning (15000 km and still going strong) Does anyone of you guys have the sl gen2 working with a levociraptor or other kinds of derestricting?
 
Dave_B said:
Is the SL2 being discontinued? (Replaced with Levo R?)
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SL2 are available at crazy low prices atm so definitely on it's way out but I wouldn't really say the Levo R is a replacement for it. It would be nice to see an updated version with a punchier motor and bigger battery but Specialized seem a bit all over the place atm so who knows.
 
Here's what I got when I typed in Levo 4 vs Levo R.
specialized levo 4 vs levo R.

"The 2026 Specialized Levo R is a lighter, faster, and more agile "rally-style" version of the 2026 Levo 4, featuring 140mm/130mm travel and 29-inch wheels. While the Levo 4 is a rugged, 160mm/150mm mullet "trail truck," the Levo R uses a new, lighter frame designed for quick, responsive riding."

My thoughts are the SL2 might get upgraded but not shelved. I just bought a gen 1 SL frameset at a crazy low price.
 
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